Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ Year B. By Tobe Eze

1.       Gentleness of the body is not gentleness of the heart, make them to be one. Tobe Eze.

Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ Year B.

FIRST READING
Exodus 24:3—8

SECOND READING
Hebrews 9:11—15

GOSPEL
Mark 14:12—16, 22—26

THEME: THE HIGHEST GIFT ONE CAN GIVE

It was Nikolaus Michaelson in a film named The Originals that said, “I will protect Hope my daughter with my last drop of blood”. This is not equivalent to what God did for and to us but just to compare it for us to see what likely God has done for us.

There was a video sent to me through WhatsApp by a friend. The video is a story of a man who had a daughter. The mother of the child died at the 4^th year of the child. The father was left to take care of the daughter. After her graduation from school, she fell Ill. She was taken to the hospital by her father. When they conducted test, they found out that she had heart problem (heart failure), she needed a new heart but she was not told. One day at the bed side, she told her father to do anything he can to save her, though she was ignorant of the type of sickness she was suffering from. He promised her that she will do that. After pondering on the whole thing, he went to the doctor and asked him to take his heart. The doctor objected but after all said and done, his heart was taken but before that he wrote something and asked them to his daughter to read when she must have recovered. After some months of recovery, she was given the write up to see what her father did for her. He used his life in exchanged of her daughter’s own. Though ethically “it is not right to take life no matter what”. This story is just to show us how our Lord Jesus Christ offered himself to redeem us. Out love the father sacrificed himself, out of love our Lord Jesus Christ sacrificed himself. Continue Reading.................

In the first reading, we can see how the priest kills, uses the blood of animals for cleansing of sins. The victim is different from the priest. The priest has nothing to contribute in the sacrifice rather that to perform it. This is related or the same with what our traditionalists do these days. When one sins, expiatory sacrifice is being made to clean the person's sins. The person takes animal that committed no sin to wash out one's own sin. And innocent victim.

In the second reading, we can seeing the difference between the two sacrifices. But we still have a connecting thing which is that the cleansing victim or the sacrificial victim is not the one who committed the offence. An innocent victim also. Jesus who is the priest and the victim committed no sin but for the sake of his people. Because of love of us he chose to be the priest and the victim. Blood that expiates more than Abel’s (Hebrews 12:24).

The Gospel brings out the act and where he gave us to that highest gift and highest love. He on the night before he was betrayed, instead of giving his apostles, food only for their earthly journey also gave them for the spirit. Not only his apostles but also asked them to continue with it in his memory. He extended it to us and that is what we are enjoying till date. St. Paul in affirmation of this said that “Is not the cup of thanksgiving for which we give thanks a participation in the blood of Christ? And is not the bread that we break a participation in the body of Christ? (1Corinthians 10: 16). Again he said, For I received from the Lord what I also passed on to you: The Lord Jesus, on the night he was betrayed, took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and said, “This is my body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of me.”  In the same way, after supper he took the cup, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood; do this, whenever you drink it, in remembrance of me.”  For whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes. So then, whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of sinning against the body and blood of the Lord.  Everyone ought to examine themselves before they eat of the bread and drink from the cup. For those who eat and drink without discerning the body of Christ eat and drink judgment on themselves (1Corinthians 11:23-29).

God in his own part has given us all that we need, he has given us the highest gift anyone on earth can give to his/her beloved, but how do we treat this precious gift? We always focus on those who do eat the body and blood that they will not have life in full (John 53-56) but what of us that eat it in a profane state? (Everyone ought to examine themselves before they eat of the bread and drink from the cup. For those who eat and drink without discerning the body of Christ eat and drink judgment on themselves 1Corinthians 11:29). We are worst than those who do not eat it at all. It does not end in receiving a gift rather we should know that every gift comes with responsibilities. As Christians and Catholics, we are bound to give respect and worship this gift with our whole hearts and minds. We should just think of how we feel when we have given someone our precious article and that person plays with it.

A man that sent his wife parking said that what pained him most was that he give the woman all that he had which is his love and she toiled with it. We should just check how it pains us when a woman, man, boy or girl breaks our hearts, that is how it pains Jesus when we toil with his gift (which is his body and blood). We should today ask God to give us the grace to hold firm this his precious gift that is the highest anyone can offer. The gift of his life.

THANKS AND HAPPY SUNDAY.